1. Will my kids like it?
Yes! There are a few peril-fraught moments which caused my 7-year-old daughter to hug my arm tightly, but the film is rated G so, as you'd expect, nothing too terrible happens. The humor is balanced well, with plenty for all ages to enjoy: My kids laughed and grinned throughout most of the movie.
2. Will I like it?
Yes! This may be the best of the three Toy Story films, which is saying an awful lot. The Ken doll (voiced by Michael Keaton) by himself is funny enough that the other humor is almost a bonus. There are at least a dozen references to other movies, including ones (like Star Wars and My Neighbor Totoro) that geek kids are likely to get. And there's serious poignancy – if your eyes are dry during the last major scene of the film, either you've had your tear ducts blocked by plastic surgery or you need your heart thawed out. My sixty-something mother saw the movie with my kids, my wife and me, and she loved it just as much as we did, so I can safely say it crosses generations.
3. When's the best time for a bathroom break?
The story moves pretty quickly, so there aren't any particularly great times. If someone really can't wait till the end, though (the film is 103 minutes long, so that could well happen), I'd recommend going right when the toys are first dropped off at the day-care center – any plot points you miss you'll pick up easily when you return.
4. Is it worth paying more for 3-D? How about IMAX?
I'm not the biggest fan of the 3-D trend, but I have to say that yes, it really is worth it for this one. The fact that the whole film was made on computers makes the 3-D look utterly seamless, and the fact that it's a Pixar film means the filmmakers kept it from becoming a distraction. If it's convenient for you to see it in IMAX 3-D, you should, because it is just absolutely gorgeous. Plus there's a preview of Hubble 3-D that you'll only see with the IMAX 3-D version, which is pretty awesome, even if the movie's been out for several months already.
5. Any good previews?
Yes, though not 100 percent. My family saw previews for Despicable Me, Tron: Legacy, MegaMind and Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore. Of those: the first two look great (and the Tron trailer is particularly excellent); MegaMind has potential (including great voice talent) but is from DreamWorks so could still be lousy; the less said about the Cats & Dogs movie the better.
6. Do I need to sit through the credits for a bonus scene at the end?
You will want to stay seated to watch some very funny short scenes shown next to the first half (or so) of the credits. Once those are over, though, there's nothing else to see but scrolling text.
7. Will I want to see it again?
If you're remotely like me, yes! This is a seriously excellent film which, if there is any justice in the world, will be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar as Up was. As of this writing, I left the theater less than four hours ago, and I'd gladly go see it again right now if I had the time and money. I know I missed some Easter eggs here and there, because Pixar films are always rich with them, and it'd be fun to look for them, too.
8. Is it loud or scary?
There are a few loud moments, but nothing worse than your average movie these days. As for scary, there is one scene not too far from the end where the toys seem to be about to be consumed in a giant incinerator (this is the scene that caused the aforementioned arm-hugging). Small kids will probably be scared by the scene, but it doesn't last quite long enough that it's likely to cause too much trauma.
9. How's the animation of the human characters?
This is where you can really see just how far Pixar has come in the 15years since the first Toy Story came out. At that time the kids were in uncanny valley territory, but not at all now, as you'd expect after the quality of Up. Once the new film is out on DVD, I'm going to have to sit down and watch the three movies back-to-back-to-back to really see the evolution of the animation. But the human characters are easily the most realistic animated ones I've ever seen.
10. Is the ending satisfying?
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, yes! It's the perfect ending not only for the movie but for the Toy Story trilogy. You'll cry because it's sad and you'll cry because it's beautiful, and then you'll grin because they nailed it so perfectly.
